


Decisions, Decisions

by forgetmenotjimmy



Series: Opening Our Inside Eyes [1]
Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Angst and Humor, Blood and Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Dark Magic, Developing Friendships, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Enemies to Friends, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Moral Dilemmas, Self-Worth Issues
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-17
Updated: 2020-08-22
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:35:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25944472
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/forgetmenotjimmy/pseuds/forgetmenotjimmy
Summary: Rayla bests Soren and mortally wounds him in their fight at the Moon Nexus. As he’s dying, Soren realises he must protect Ezran and Callum and he tells Rayla of Viren’s intentions. After Claudia heals him everyone is faced with the same question: what is the right thing to do?
Relationships: Rayla & Soren (The Dragon Prince)
Series: Opening Our Inside Eyes [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1882984
Comments: 10
Kudos: 45





	1. It's Lighter At the End

**Author's Note:**

> So this is another 'what if' idea I had. Soren and Rayla seem evenly matched and it'd be interesting to see who'd win if they didn't get interrupted.  
> There is a non-graphic description of a mortal injury in the beginning but apart from that it's canon-typical stuff, though do let me know if you think any tags are missing.   
> Unbeta'd so let me know if you spot anything.  
> :D

“I’ll take care of her. Find the princes!” Soren called after he kicked the wickedly fast elf away.

“Are you sure?” Claudia asked, anxiously looking between the fighters. Soren grunted a ‘yes’ as he clashed swords with the elf again. He grinned at the elf’s wide eyes.

“You never expected to hold onto them by yourself, did you?”

The elf growled and came at him again. Soren’s blood sang as they fought. She was quick and clever, making him have to use all of his instincts and training.

Unlike the claustrophobic press whilst defending the King, this fight was exhilarating and he couldn’t help but enjoy it. Inexplicably, he ended up on his back.

 _Huh, maybe sweep the leg, could be a thing in sword fighting_. He thought before grabbing a pile of dirt and launching it at her face. The elf cried and stepped back, hand swiping at her eyes, giving Soren time to reclaim his sword and roll to standing.

Unfortunately, she rallied before he could cut her down but he did manage to make her drop one sword and throw her against a tree. She did something to her blade to make it into a hook, catching his sword before it could slice her neck. Using his superior strength, Soren pressed forward, forcing his sword closer to her.

 _Huh, her eyes are purple. Cool_.

The next thing he knew was an agonising pain in his upper thigh. She’d kicked a nerve cluster there. Sources dammit, it hurt! The elf shoved him backwards as he kicked out with his other leg, tangling their feet. She flailed, one hand slapping against his breastplate for balance.

Soren managed to right himself and grit his teeth but before he could even breathe, he dropped his sword.

His fingers had just opened and let it fall. Soren was confused. He hadn’t dropped his sword in _years_. What the…?

He looked at the elf and saw that she was just as surprised. Then she looked to her sword hand and Soren followed her gaze. The sword was extended beyond his field of vision but suddenly he didn’t need to see it as he could _feel it in his back_. A white-hot pain burned between his ribs, somewhere under his shoulder blade. A spasm lanced through him and he choked on nothing.

The elf’s eyes widened in surprise.

“I..” She stammered, before pulling the hooked blade out, ripping his cape with it. Soren staggered back, grimacing at the hot wetness spreading along the back of his tunic and the sharpness that felt like it was cutting him with every movement, every breath.

He fell to his knees, beginning to wheeze. Soren had never punctured a lung before, but he recognised the sound of one. Plus, there was the difficulty breathing. _Oh no_.

The elf knelt in front of him. “Oh no. I didn’t mean…I haven’t kidnapped them. I promise! I’m helping them take the dragon prince back to Xadia.”

 _Dragon prince? What was she talking about?_ Head growing heavier, Soren fumbled for his dagger. She saw and insisted. “I swear! Look!” She threw her sword away, holding her hands up.

“You… won’t hurt… them?­” Soren asked haltingly.

“No. I swear by the Moon.­”

Soren tried to focus on her face but his vision was swimming. He was losing blood and might die, might never complete his mission. Claudia would take the boys back to Katolis, where his father would…he’d…

_No._

Soren pitched forward and grabbed the elf’s shoulders. “Run!” He gasped. “Katolis…not safe. Take them… far away.”

The elf frowned. “What?”

“My sister can’t…Viren.” Black spots began to eat away at everything and then he was on his back. The elf’s lips were moving but he couldn’t hear her. “Viren’ll…kill them. Take them…”

Everything went black.

…

Callum was very surprised to see Claudia burst into his and Ezran’s room, but surprise was overtaken by panic when he heard that Soren and Rayla were fighting. Ignoring Claudia’s protests, he raced over to where she’d mentioned they were. His heart stopped when he saw Rayla knelt beside Soren’s prone body.

Rayla looked up with manic eyes. “Hurry! Get Lujanne!”

“Soren?” Claudia had caught up. “What did you do?” She demanded, stalking over.

“Find Lujanne.­" Callum instructed Ez, who’d followed them. Looking distressed, Ez rallied and rushed off. Callum reached the scene and felt his stomach plummet. Soren was on his side, Rayla pressing both hands against his back, a dark stain on his tunic. Callum caught sight of one of her swords and the blood.

“You monster!” Claudia cried, hand rummaging in her bag as her eyes pierced Rayla.

“Wait!” Callum grabbed her wrist.

Claudia’s face contorted. “She stabbed him!”

“And he’s still hurt!” Callum shouted over her. “Let’s help him first! We don’t have time for this.”

Claudia held his gaze for a long moment before the tension bled out of her shoulders.

“Fine. I’ll deal with you later.” She promised Rayla.

Hardly reacting to the threat, Rayla told them. “I think I punctured his lung.”

Callum knelt down and saw Soren’s face; eyes closed, lips blue and he was rasping.

“What do we do? Lujanne isn’t a healer.” Callum asked.

“The damage is inside. I can do something to ease his breathing but not close the wound.” Rayla explained, eyes shining and voice trembling a little as she spoke.

“I’ll heal him.” Claudia said, drawing out several things from her bag. Callum watched, clutching at his book strap and for once not thinking about the morality of Dark Magic.

“Lay him on his back.” Claudia instructed, not looking at either Rayla or Callum. They did so gently and Claudia placed flowers over Soren’s eyes.

“Get back.”

Callum grabbed Rayla’s elbow and led them back a few paces. Claudia stuffed something in Soren’s mouth and then chanted, throwing spores into the air. Purple lights flashed.

A beat. Then Soren took in a deep, desperate breath, eyes snapping open as he sat up. Claudia let out a relieved laugh, sitting back.

“Soren, are you…is it all healed?”

Soren blinked, looking between his sister, Callum and Rayla. He put a hand to the wound on his back, breathing in deeply.

“Wow, you’re amazing Clauds!”

“Soren!” Claudia breathed, hugging him fiercely. “You big idiot, you scared me!”

Over Claudia’s shoulder, Soren looked at Rayla. Callum’s relief was overshadowed by concern, though weirdly, Rayla didn’t seem to share it. Callum turned his attention back to Soren and realised that his friend didn’t seem angry or scared…in fact, he wasn’t sure what that expression meant.

Finally, Claudia pulled back, but before she could say anything, Soren spoke. “It’s okay Claudia. The elf didn’t mean to stab me, we kind of tripped each other up.”

Claudia eyed Rayla suspiciously but didn’t interrupt as Soren went on. “She didn’t kidnap them. She’s helping.”

Everyone just stared for a moment. Callum recovered first. “He’s right! Me and Ez went with Rayla by choice. It’s late and Soren should probably rest. Why don’t we talk in the morning?”

Claudia looked between everyone, her mouth slightly open. She tilted her head at Soren but he just nodded solemnly. Huffing, she folded her arms.

“Fine! Come on, I hope there are cute rooms for us too.”

The group met Ezran and Lujanne on the way back to the cottages and Callum quickly explained the situation. Lujanne’s face tightened at the implication of Dark Magic though Callum had only described it as ‘Claudia healed Soren’.

The elf mage didn’t say anything though, instead showing Claudia and Soren to a spare room.

“Are you okay?” Callum asked Rayla as she was seeing him and Ezran to their room.

“Yeah.” She answered belatedly.

“Must have been scary. Them attacking you.”

“Yeah, well, a lot of humans have been attacking me lately. I got used to it.”

Callum moved back a bit at her harsh tone. Sighing, she looked down at her hands. They were stained pink.

“Sorry. Just tired.”

“Okay, well, see you in the morning.” Callum put a hand on the door to join Ez but Rayla’s question stopped him.

“Who’s Viren?”

Callum frowned. “Uh, Viren is the High Mage, he was really close friends with my dad.” His eyes narrowed. ­“He’s also Soren and Claudia’s dad. Did Soren say something to you? How do you know his name?”

Rayla nodded as she heard the information, but her expression didn’t give anything away. “Thanks, yeah, your friend started rambling before he passed out. He mentioned the name so, I was curious. Good night, Callum.”

“Night, Rayla.” Callum went into the room. That was odd. Though he supposed it made sense that Soren would be delirious from the blood loss. Ez was already half-way asleep by the time Callum hauled himself onto the bed, but Callum himself lay awake for a while as his mind turned.

…

Rayla watched the sunrise. What a night. She hadn’t slept a wink. Unable to help herself she’d snuck out and prowled between the rooms, listening for sounds of a struggle. She’d been unable to comprehend the new human’s motives. The mage was straightforward: loyal to the High Mage and looking to secure Zym. Rayla’s previous encounter with her and all the ‘the egg is a weapon’ talk tracked with that motive. But the Crownguard…

At first Rayla had assumed he was a lackey doing the mage’s dirty work but the panic in his eyes as he’d told her to take the princes away led her to believe he had his own goal. His speech had been difficult to follow right before he’d lost consciousness, but she thought she’d heard ‘kill’. Who was going to kill who though?

Was this ‘Viren’ planning on killing the princes and taking the throne? Callum had said he’d been the king’s closest friend so would he really betray his friend’s children so soon after the King’s death?

She couldn’t think of who else would be planning to kill anyone else though. The Crownguard couldn’t intend to kill the princes if he told Rayla to take them away; he’d mentioned his sister but she’d had plenty of opportunity to harm the princes whilst Rayla had been fighting the Crownguard. It didn’t make any sense.

They’d all agreed to talk in the morning and as far as Rayla could tell, no one had left their room during the night. She’d just have to observe everyone and figure out what was happening.

…

Claudia woke just before dawn. Bolting upright and gulping air, she clutched at her chest; trying to get her breathing under control. The nightmare had been horrible: she’d been trying desperately to staunch a river of blood gushing from Soren’s back as her father had demanded she give him the egg.

 _But it’s inside him! If I take it out, he’ll die!_ She’d sobbed as the blood rose to her elbows.

Breathing steadier, Claudia looked over to Soren and found him still passed out. She could tell because he was a noisy sleeper, always muttering or twitching, sometimes even slashing at imaginary enemies. Now he was silent and still.

Claudia’s skin crawled and she shifted over gently to check his pulse. Still strong, thank the Sources.

The previous night had been so scary but also confusing. Why had she left him with the elf? Why had the elf tried to help him instead of leave to take care of Claudia? And why had Soren spouted all that weird stuff?

What had happened?

Soren had pretty much conked out as soon as Claudia had helped him out of his armour, so she’d been left with the questions that’d plagued her most of the night. Whatever was going on, it certainly made her mission from her dad all the harder.

An hour after sunrise she heard voices and went out to see Callum and the elf were up. The older elf was making some kind of disgusting breakfast, Claudia overheard. That gave her an idea.

In between making the most delicious pancakes, Claudia got Soren up and checked his wound. There was only a fresh scar on his back and his lungs sounded good.

“Magic isn’t always creepy and weird.” Soren admitted begrudgingly as he’d gotten dressed. At least he seemed normal again, Claudia thought as she took her feast outside to the dining table.

“Let me do the talking.” She said just before they reached the others. Soren didn’t reply.

The elf was very buddy-buddy with everyone but the pancakes seemed to go over well, so Claudia’s nerves settled a little. That all crashed down when she found out the egg was now in fact a dragon. Forcing her chin up, Claudia thought to herself that it was a minor set-back: the cutie was so little, between her and Soren, they’d be able to transport it back without much trouble. Callum insisted on taking it to Xadia though, so Claudia would need a plan. She noticed that the elf assassin was staring at Soren, who was staring back. Neither seemed angry, but the looks were still intense.

“Is everything okay?” Ezran asked.

The elf looked at him and smiled tightly. “Everything’s fine.­”

Soren swallowed and turned to Claudia. “Can we talk?”

Claudia nodded, glad for the excuse to leave and strategize some more. Hopefully Soren would be able to come up with some ideas that weren’t stuffing them in sacks or something.

_Dad’s counting on us._

…

Soren had slept weirdly. He hadn’t had nightmares per se, more like freaky dreams. In them, he’d been pinned down by some invisible force as the Moonshadow assassins had crept closer. Voices had called out to him: Callum and Ezran crying for help, his father berating him for being weak, Claudia’s hoarse laughter and King Harrow whispering a prayer. The voices had only grown louder as the near-invisible monsters had stalked closer, weapons flashing in the low light. Until _she’d_ appeared, smiling down at him.

“You’ll know the right thing.” The elf had said and he’d woken.

Soren didn’t usually have such abstract dreams – typically he was fighting some kind of enemy or having a picnic or something – so he wasn’t sure what to make of it. On waking though, he’d realised that the elf no doubt suspected his secret mission.

Even though she was the enemy, the knowledge lifted a weight off his chest. He could ask someone else about it. As an elf she wasn’t trustworthy but she hadn’t acted as he’d expected either.

Claudia had seemed normal as she bustled around with her plan to ‘butter up’ Callum and Ezran. Soren’s stomach had felt queasy but he hadn’t said anything, couldn’t. At least until the elf had stared him down at the table.

Oh, she was going to tell them. Soren swallowed down a lump of pancake. He had no choice but tell Claudia. She’d figure something out; she was the brains after all.

Except she didn’t believe him. 

“Kill them? No, no you must have misunderstood. There’s no way he’d have told you to do that!”

They were back in their room, Claudia waving her hands as she talked. Soren drooped. He’d bene vaguely afraid that this would happen but still he’d hoped. He thought back to that conversation; there was no way his dad could have meant anything else.

If the princes were alive and Soren was meant to return with the news they’d died, what else could he have been supposed to do? _Hope_ there was a terrible accident?

He tried to explain this to Claudia but she just kept on shaking her head.

“Enough!” She’d gotten annoyed, crossing her arms. Soren knew there was no more arguing to be done.

He sighed. “Well, they’re still going to go to the magic land anyway. You heard Callum.”

Shaking herself, Claudia pulled herself up and smiled. “Oh, I still have a way to convince them.”

“What’s that?”

“Trust.” Claudia’s smile dimmed as she considered her brother. “Maybe you should lie down.”

Soren bristled at her tone. “I’m fine. I’m going for a walk.”

“Okay, just don’t tell anyone about, you know.”

Soren hesitated, the elf’s easy smile and how she’d ruffled Ez’s hair came back to him.

“Soren.”

“Okay, I won’t mention it.” He held up his hands.

“Good.” Claudia smiled and then skipped out.

Soren swung his arms out, feeling for any twinges in his chest. Nothing. It felt like he hadn’t been stabbed the day before. Good; he’d missed his morning workout. He made for the door but then stopped and looked down at his sword.

For the first time ever, he contemplated taking it off and leaving it in the room. After all, he didn’t intend to fight anyone and maybe it would be safer…He dithered. He couldn’t leave it; he’d carried that sword with him every day for years. And just because he had it with him didn’t mean he’d _use_ it.

He felt for his dagger holstered on his other side and took in a deep breath.

He left the sword on the bed.

…

Ezran put his hands on his hips. “Azymondias! Bad dragon!”

Zym whined and tilted his head.

“We’re supposed to be working on your flying, not frolicking!”

“Frolicking?” Ellis giggled and Ava woofed.

Ezran puffed up his chest, trying to emulate Opeli’s voice. “Yes: frolicking is never productive and we have things to do. Don’t put off till tomorrow what you could do today.”

His friends just looked at him.

“I suppose that makes sense.” Ellis said finally. Then Ava turned her head, looking past Ez. Following her gaze, Ezran saw Soren in the distance doing his morning workout: lunging and doing push-ups in between jogging.

“Is he working out in armour?” Ellis asked, sounding a mixture of confused and impressed.

“Yeah. Soren takes his training very seriously- hey!” Ez’s eyes lit up.

Soren would know how to help train Zym. Ezran jogged over, the others following.

“Hey Soren!” Ez called.

Soren looked up from his bent-over stretching. “Oh hey Ez- uh, your princeliness. How’s it hanging?”

Ignoring the awkward greeting, Ezan launched into an explanation of their problem with ‘help’ from the others. Soren frowned and held up a hand.

“Hold up, you’re trying to teach him to fly and you didn’t start with the basics?”

“Flapping is the basics, right?” Ez asked, suddenly unsure.

Soren scratched his head. “If he hasn’t used his flapping muscles before, I don’t think they’ll be strong enough to support him.”

“You can’t run before you can walk.” Ellis pointed out.

“Exactly! So what’s the ‘walking’ to flying?” Soren asked.

Everyone thought for a second, then Ezran saw a bird soar overhead. “Aha!”

Soren used rope from his pack to make a harness for Zym, then they all went up to the plateau. There was a strong breeze and Soren was confident he could hold Zym securely. Still, Ez asked Phoe-Phoe to be on standby, just in case. She, Ellis and Ava settled near the cliff face as Ez gave Zym last minute instruction. Zym chirped and wagged his tail.

“Don’t worry, Ezran. The little guy’s got this.” Soren reassured him, kneeling down and letting Zym climb onto his shoulders. Then he stood, holding onto the rope attached to the harness with one hand, the other steadying Zym.

“Okay Zym, open you wings!” Ez called.

Soren had to duck his head to avoid getting slapped as Zym complied. Soren staggered back a step but the wind didn’t seem strong enough to lift Zym up.

“Get on his head!” Ez shouted.

“What?” Soren protested as Zym clambered up. “Ow!” He cried even as he gave the little dragon a leg up. The wind ruffled Zym’s wings more. “You feeling it?” Soren asked.

Zym yipped ‘yes’ and Ez interpreted.

“Good. Let’s keep it here so you get used to the feeling.” Soren instructed, seemingly adjusted to having a dragon on his head.

After a while, Soren deemed Zym ready for the next stage. He threw Zym up and Zym opened his wings and try to glide on the wind current. There were lots of failed attempts where Zym just fell like a stone back into Soren’s arms. Still, everyone encouraged him and finally, he managed to stay up for a full minute.

“I wish I could do that. It looks so fun.” Ellis sighed, chin on her palm as she watched Soren get ready to throw Zym again. “Doesn’t he get tired?”

“I think he is. We should stop soon; he’s only a baby.” Ezran replied.

“Huh?”

Ava woofed. Ez was distracted from Ellis’s confusion by Soren launching Zym up again. This time, Zym lasted a whole three minutes, Phoe-Phoe flying beside him.

“That was great! Hi five!” Soren said once Zym had fluttered down again. Zym turned in Soren’s arms and pressed a paw to his hand, tongue lolling out. Ezran ran over, gushing praise. Zym fell into Ezran’s arms and Soren undid the rope attached to the harness.

“Zym says thanks.­” Ez told Soren, breaking into giggles as Zym licked his cheek. Soren looked down at them both, brows pulled together and mouth in a flat line. After a moment he blinked and grinned.

“The little guy did all the work. Come on, I don’t know about you kids but I am starving!”

Ez shook away the odd moment and enthusiastically took Ava up on the offer to ride her as Ellis coaxed Soren into giving her a piggy back ride. Soren challenged Ava to a race and they were all laughing the whole way down. 

…

Rayla heaved a huge sigh of relief as Ezran and company burst into view. She’d heard the laughter but the sight of them whole and happy after hours of fruitless searching as reassuring. Wait…was Ellis on the Crownguard’s shoulders? The whole ensemble was very strange, but not bad, she supposed. Even though part of her couldn’t trust his intentions.

“Rayla! Zym flew!”

“Well, glided.” Ellis corrected Ezran’s excited claim.

“He did very well.” Ezran jumped off Ava with Zym in his arms and scratched under the dragonling’s chin. “Didn’t you?”

Rayla smiled indulgently even as she kept her guard up. But when Soren knelt to let Ellis clamber off him, Rayla had to do a double take. His sword was missing. Soren met her eyes, looking as wary as she’d felt two seconds prior.

Ezran broke Rayla’s focus by asking about lunch. Defying her expectations again, the Crownguard helped her wrangle the kids around the table. Rayla had collected some berries whilst searching for the kids and Soren fetched some bread and smoked meat from his pack.

Rayla noticed that he’d also retrieved his sword. She wasn’t sure what to make of that. Was it because he felt threatened by her presence? Was it because he was scheming something? Had the flying lesson been an attempt to hurt Ez? But if it had been, why hadn’t he taken his sword with him? Nothing made sense.

Callum and the mage joined them and Rayla fought her anger at the two’s sickening smiles. That her and the Crownguard’s reactions mirrored each other just confused her more. 

As they ate, Rayla watched everyone’s interactions. It was clear the two sets of siblings had known each other for years: they told in-jokes, interrupted with additional details whenever one of them told a story and were comfortable with each other. With the exception of Soren; Rayla gathered from Callum’s occasional confused looks that the Crownguard wasn’t behaving completely normally.

Claudia didn’t find the ‘teaching Zym to fly’ story as delightful as Callum did, but she kept her frustration relatively well-hidden. Rayla only noticed because she was observing closely. She also plainly saw Callum’s crush on the mage: his stammering and blushing more than enough proof. Just great.

What she couldn’t tell, however, was how the mage felt in return. Her reactions seemed both genuine and performed at the same time. It wasn’t even clear if she knew of Callum’s feelings for her.

The other concern Rayla had – beyond the sibling’s motives and threat to the group – was what they knew. Rayla still hadn’t managed to tell Callum about his father but the multiple times she’d tried… She’d also begun to question if it were her place. Once they broke off for lunch and Rayla saw the siblings go off together, probably to scheme, Rayla slipped away to find Lujanne.


	2. Bond of Blood

Claudia had been pleased with the progress she’d made with Callum. Even after spending time with the bendy elf he still had feelings for her. He seemed very taken with primal magic but Claudia knew her father had books on the subject and other relics Callum could play with. Also, the princes didn’t seem to know that the King was dead, so once Claudia told them, their duty would dictate they return home.

The only problem was the elf. As they all considered the dragon as a cute animal and not future threat, Claudia knew she wouldn’t be able to convince them to take it back to Katolis. She and Soren would have to overpower or trick them. The elf was a formidable fighter and wouldn’t be easy to defeat in a fair fight; she’d also bewitched the princes so it would be hard to make them see her true colours. Maybe it was time for divide and conquer.

At lunch, Claudia had noticed the elf watching her closely. Back in her and Soren’s room, she put her mind to how she could use that to her advantage.

Soren was no help, remaining almost completely silent as Claudia laid out everything and mused on ideas for their next move. Almost silent because he’d quietly suggested they let the princes carry on until Xadia.

“Are you crazy? Have you been listening to anything I just said?” Claudia’s arms waved as she paced. “That thing is dangerous! We need to take it home so Dad can contain it!”

Soren didn’t speak again, instead curling up on the bed. He was probably still tired from the shock of the day before.

“Don’t worry Sor-bear. Just let me handle it. You can have a rematch with the elf when I say, okay?”

Although Claudia would be nearby to help the next time – she wasn’t going to chance the elf cheating and hurting Soren again.

There was plenty of time before sundown so Claudia went to hang out with Ezran, seeing if she couldn’t learn anything else useful.

…

Soren lay on his side, only vaguely watching the view from the window. A magic bird sat on a magic tree and chirped magically. It was a pretty sight but he couldn’t concentrate on it. Inside his head was a hurricane of fears and conflicting ideas.

Whilst travelling with Claudia before, Soren had decided to defer worrying about what he’d do until they reached the princes. Well, now there they were and he still had no clue.

Claudia was no help – flat out refusing to believe Dad had given the order. Soren sighed. His dad might have very good reasons for giving it: he’d been the king’s closest advisor and friend after all. The King had called him a brother! Dad might have the best, most logical reason in the world but…Soren just couldn’t do it.

He’d realized when he’d been bleeding on the elf; when he’d thought he’d die. In those moments, all he could think about was what would happen when they returned to Katolis and protecting them.

So no, as much as he wished he could – and wasn’t that messed up? – Soren couldn’t kill the princes. His father’s enraged face swam into his mind’s eye and he curled into a tighter ball. He hadn’t been lying to Claudia when he’d said he didn’t know what his father would do to him if he failed.

Viren hadn’t ever physically hurt Soren, except that one time which he’d apologised for even though it had all been Soren’s fault. However, his dad had a million and one ways to make Soren feel like…well, feel bad in general. Indulging in a sudden masochistic urge, Soren imagined Viren demoting him, or kicking him out of the Crownguard entirely, making him work in the library or…sending him out of Katolis altogether.

In the months after the divorce, his dad had threatened to send Soren to Del-Bar when he’d been too annoying or whiny. Soren had quickly learned to go straight to Claudia if he had anything to complain about, or Callum if he wanted to grumble about Claudia. Over the years he’d found himself criticising Claudia less anyway, seeing as she was his favourite person in the world – despite the insurmountable divide of Dark Magic.

Thinking about Claudia brought him to a more pressing issue than his continuing inability to be a good son: protecting the princes from Claudia. Well, not from _her_ , just from her mission from their father.

His dad and Claudia had a bond; Soren couldn’t sabotage his own sister, let alone threaten that bond and get her in trouble. So…what could he do?

He couldn’t think of anything. Groaning, he hit the side of his head a few times. Think, think! Usually he’d just do whatever his dad had told him – or ask Claudia. Soren wasn’t the brains of the family; he couldn’t come up with any clever or complex ideas.

The elf appeared in his mind’s eye. She was the enemy and not trustworthy but…maybe she could be trustworthy? What else was he going to do? There was no one else.

Soren got up and went to find her.

…

“We don’t have that yet.” Callum said, tone gentle even as the words needled at Rayla’s heart. There was nothing for it: she would just have to tell him. Lujanne’s terrible wisdom had made it crystal clear. She opened her mouth but a knocking interrupted her.

The Crownguard was at the door. Rayla gritted her jaw. Why was it so impossible to get a moment’s peace?

“Hey, Soren!” Callum greeted, relief running through his tone: another splinter in Rayla’s heart. Was talking to her such an ordeal that this big lump was a better option?

“Uh, hi, Callum. What’s up?”

“Nothing much. We uh, weren’t talking about anything.”

“Okay.” The Crownguard accepted without question. Rayla barely refrained from rolling her eyes. Then the human surprised her. “I wanted to talk to you.”

Rayla blinked. The guard was definitely looking at her.

Still, she felt compelled to check. “Me?”

“Yeah.”

“By talking you mean…” Callum interjected.

“Just talking. I promise.” Soren reassured. “Look.” He unbuckled his sword belt and leant the sheathed sword against the wall.

Rayla folded her arms. “Okay tough guy, let’s talk.”

She led him out of the room and down the path.

“Have fun!” Callum shouted after them.

“I don’t know what to do.” Soren began when they were out of earshot.

“About your father wanting the princes dead.” Rayla guessed.

“Right.” Soren confirmed, not at all impressed by how she’d figured it out. Or maybe he just didn’t realise how weak his voice had been before he’d passed out. He did seem very preoccupied.

“I know Dad has his reasons – he couldn’t have told me to do it unless he had a good, saving-all-of-humanity reason. He’s so smart and he’s the person everyone looks up to.”

Unable to reconcile ‘child murderer’ with ‘good person’, Rayla folded her arms. “You do everything he says?”

“Yes.” Soren answered without a shred of shame. Then his brow wrinkled. “But this time, I can’t. I just can’t kill them or let them go back…”

“And be killed.”

Soren nodded.

Rayla shrugged. “So what’s the problem?”

“Claudia. She doesn’t believe that the princes will be in danger if they go back, plus there’s the dragon.”

“She still wants to take it back to that mon… your father.” Rayla caught herself, taking a deep breath to control her temper.

Soren didn’t seem to notice her hesitation or hasty correction.

Instead he nodded. “She has to. She can’t fail him and I can’t make her fail.”

“Why not?”

“Do you have siblings?”

“No.”

Soren waved a hand as if that explained anything. “I’m her big brother. I have to protect her, even from him.”

Rayla’s stomach squirmed at the implications behind that. “I see your dilemma.”

Soren sighed and sat on a large rock, looking for all the world like a sad puppy. Despite herself, Rayla felt a kernel of sympathy for him. She knew something about duty vs. morality after all.

“You want my advice?”

“Yes! Yes, I would very much like that.”

Rayla couldn’t help her chuckle at his enthusiasm. “Be honest. Tell your sister that you know the right thing to do is.”

“But I’m not sure what that is.”

“Hold on, you just said that you knew killing them wasn’t right.” 

“No. I said I couldn’t do it. My dad is always right. He’s been fighting for the good of humanity for…forever!” His shoulders slumped. “Just because I’m a bad son, doesn’t mean he’s not right.”

Rayla felt frozen for a long moment. There was so much to unpack there. It was almost enough to shut down her brain.

She sat next to him. “If you really thought that, you’d take the princes back and let your dad kill them.”

Soren examined his feet, shuffling them a little. Finally, he asked. “Are you going to help me or not?”

“I can’t do that if you don’t tell me what you want.” She humoured him, hoping he could be talked around. Who knew? Maybe he’d turn out to be a useful ally.

“I need a way for Claudia to succeed in her mission to bring the egg-the dragon back whilst making sure the princes are safe.”

Rayla thought. Then she grinned. “Maybe you just have to make it _appear_ as if she’s succeeded.”

Soren frowned but followed dutifully as Rayla went to find Lujanne – again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I’m skipping a lot of in-episode events [mostly Claudia and Callum stuff], just assume they went down as in the show.


	3. The Laying of Traps

Callum did sleep a little, but he still felt exhausted when Ezran finally woke up. He wanted to do nothing else but curl up and sleep forever. He couldn’t do that though, he needed to tell Ez that their dad was dead.

Claudia’s tearful confession had only confirmed what Callum had feared deep down to be true. It had still hurt though; like ripping off a bandage on a festering wound. What were they going to do? Ez finally woke up, rambling about dessert dreams and Callum managed to wrangle him outside. When the moment arrived though, he chickened out. He found Rayla and talked to her; it helped and she gave him a nice hug. Callum was so glad for her presence.

Claudia and Soren came up a while later and although disappointed Callum insisted on taking Zym to Xadia, Claudia gave him Harrow’s letter and suggested she and Soren go along too: to help.

Despite his melancholy, the thought of all his friends together cheered him. He told Rayla as much when he went back to the room to pack. She gave him a worried look.

“About that…”

The story she told him was so crazy Callum laughed. Ez bit his lip, looking between him and Rayla.

“Why would Viren want to hurt us?” Ez asked when Callum’s chuckles began to taper off.

“He doesn’t think you’d make the right decisions.” Soren answered from the door.

All of Callum’s manic mirth ran dry at the uncharacteristically serious expression on Soren’s face. There was a beat of silence.

“What did he tell you to do?” Callum asked. Rayla had only described it as ‘make sure you didn’t return’.

Soren glanced at Rayla before answering. “It doesn’t matter. I’m here to protect you.”

“And Claudia?” Ez asked. Soren looked shifty.

Rayla answered. “She’s convinced Zym is dangerous. There’s no way she’d agree to take him back to Xadia.”

Callum glanced at Soren, who was staring at the floor. “So what do we do?” Callum asked, hand gripping his book strap.

“Well, with Lujanne and Soren’s help, we can get the best of both worlds.” Rayla grinned.

…

The plan was actually quite simple: separate Claudia from everyone else and act their hearts out. Lujanne bid everyone farewell, talking about peace and quiet and new friends. She gave all of the humans a bracelet, each had a different coloured gemstone.

“Remember what you have learned here and don’t be strangers!”

Then they all took the path descending the caldera. Soren and Claudia hung back out of earshot. Callum swallowed, praying that the plan would work. Rayla announced loudly she was going to gather some berries. As she disappeared from view, Soren caught up with Callum and Ezran.

“Hey, Callum! Do you want some bread from this sack?” Soren asked in a loud voice. Callum made out Claudia rolling her eyes but played along.

“Sure.”

As soon as he reached out, Soren _moved._ Callum felt like the light went out in between blinks. The bag was over his head, his hands were tied behind his back and he was so caught off guard by it all that he toppled onto his knees.

He heard Ezran’s cry in distress and Soren shouting. “Claudia! The dragon!”

“Come back here!” Claudia called over Ava’s barking.

Then quiet. Callum’s heart thumped as he strained to hear anything else. For one terrible moment, he thought that maybe Soren had double crossed them.

Then footsteps and the bag was ripped from his head. Callum gasped and winced at the sunlight. When he could see again, Ez grinned down at him and Callum felt Soren kneeling behind him and undoing the ropes around his wrists.

“That was the most fun I’ve ever had being abducted!” Ez said. Bait croaked in Ez’s arms.

Callum rubbed his wrists. “Yeah.”

“Come on, she’ll be back any second.” Rayla urged them. Callum jumped, completely unaware she’d reappeared behind him. He turned back, to see she had her swords out and his stomach clenched.

“Yeah. Good luck guys!” Soren said, drawing his own sword.

“Don’t forget me!­” Ellis called. Callum and Ez nodded.

“Thank you.” Callum told Soren, before taking Ez’s hand and running into the forest the opposite way the illusion of Zym had gone. As they ran, they heard clashing of steel and over-the-top taunts from Rayla and Soren.

Soon the shouting was too quiet to hear, but they still noticed when Ava howled. That was Lujanne’s cue for phase two. Heart rabbiting, Callum tried to focus on where they were going and not worrying about what was happening behind them.

A few minutes later, he and Ez arrived at the clearing with Phoe-Phoe, Bait and Zym waited for them.

“Everyone okay?” Ez asked. All three animals responded with differing enthusiasm. The bushes rustled behind them.

Rayla emerged, already talking urgently. “I think she bought it but we should go.”

Everyone mounted up and Phoe-Phoe took off.

“Do you think Soren will be okay?” Callum asked Rayla once they were a good height off the ground.

Rayla thought for a moment. “I think he’s more than he seems at first.”

Callum compared his friend, the sometimes obnoxious but mostly supportive Soren, to the one he’s seen at the Moon Nexus. Both had the same mannerisms and way of speaking but, there was something new there.

Callum just had to believe in him. He tried not to think about Claudia.

…

Corvus was very confused.

He’d been intrigued when he’d spotted Viren’s children accompanying the elf and princes. When had they joined the party? Then the elf had left and Crownguard had attacked the princes. Corvus had prepared his kaginawa* but then as soon as the mage ran after the baby dragon, the Crownguard had released the princes and the elf slunk back. The four talked briefly, the girl on the wolf also participating before the princes left. The elf and Crownguard began play-fighting, complete with ridiculous insults. Who was the charade for?

The mage returned with a sack and the wolf had howled, tackling the Crownguard to the ground. As the mage helped throw the wolf off, the elf escaped into the forest. More wolves appeared, not as big as the first but vicious-looking. The first wolf fled and the mage conjured a spell that scared the others away. She helped her brother up and they set off after the princes; Corvus following at a distance.

He saw a giant bird disappear into the horizon, just able to see figures on its back. His shoulders slumped. No way he was catching up that day. He’d just have to continue and hope to pick up their trail once they landed. The siblings argued for a while. The Crownguard, Soren, Corvus was reminded of his name by his irate sister, insisted that the elf and princes would return for the dragon.

“It’s the whole point of their journey!”

His sister conceded and they decided to head back to the capital while leaving an obvious trail for the group to follow.

“Are you sure you’re okay?” The mage asked.

“Huh? Oh, yeah I’m fine.” Soren responded. Corvus wasn’t convinced, but then he’d seen Soren free the princes and play-fight the elf. For whatever reason, he’d been in on the deception.

Corvus guessed that the sack was _not_ filled with a dragon at all, but an illusion similar to the ones Corvus had encountered on his way up the caldera. He wasn’t sure who was responsible, it definitely wasn’t Soren, but for the time being the mysterious illusionist had left Corvus alone so he would put that question out of his mind.

As Corvus followed the siblings down the caldera, he focused on the puzzle of Soren’s motives.

Lord Viren had obviously sent his children after the princes and the dragon, ostensibly to free the boys from the elf and return them home. So why had Soren, a Crownguard sworn to protect the royal family, worked _with_ the elf and tricked his own sister while doing it?

Corvus had never spent any significant time with the siblings, only vaguely aware of their existence through other people mentioning them. He had only met Lord Viren himself a few times, mostly knowing about him through Amaya’s increasingly bitter and suspicious stories. Even Gren had admitted feeling strange in the Dark Mage’s presence, and Gren liked almost everyone.

So Corvus had a low opinion of the mage, added to that: Gren’s note informing him of the king’s death had mentioned Viren had tried to crown himself. So Corvus had assumed his children would be similar in temperament and ambition. Certainly the mage girl seemed very invested in the dragon, a very powerful ingredient in spells, according to the little Corvus knew of dark magic. 

Soren, on the other hand, had helped the princes in their mission to return the dragon to Xadia. Corvus finally believed the elf had no ill intentions towards the princes; they had been handed the opportunity to escape her through Viren’s children and hadn’t taken it. So they trusted her. Also, if their cause was aligned, she’d have no reason to hurt them. After they completed their task was another matter, but for now, he could stop worrying about her hurting them.

Unless Soren was a secret Xadian sympathiser, he must have another motive to betray his family. Considering Viren’s actions immediately after the King’s death: the rushed funeral, the premature declaration of the princes’ deaths, trying to crown himself…It was very likely that Viren didn’t want the princes to return and had tasked his son with ensuring that they didn’t. If that was true, thank the Sources the Crownguard valued his oath over his father’s authority. 

In the end, Corvus decided, Soren’s reasoning didn’t matter; he would continue to track the princes and the siblings wouldn’t. Corvus debated sending an update to the General.

Interception was always a risk and Viren definitely knew the official codes. On the other hand, General Amaya needed to be warned Viren had his own agenda. She couldn’t be blindsided if he decided to move against her. Plus, he, Amaya and Gren had their own short hand. He decided to stop by the town and send a raven.

He did worry about if Viren had acted with the Council’s knowledge. If he had, as unlikely as that seemed and who knows he was a mage after all, then he wielded a lot of power. Maybe more power than Amaya could combat politically.

What was Viren planning exactly? And how much power did he currently have?

Corvus hoped to find out before he or the princes returned to a trap.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *The wiki just says Corvus’ weapon resembles the Japanese kaginawa so that’s what I will call it.  
> Whilst it’s mostly just ideas now, I am planning to continue this. The rating of part 2 might increase as it seems to be getting darker; Viren is uncomfortably ruthless. So yeah, if that’s not for you then just assume Viren got ousted quickly, no one got hurt and everything worked out forever. The End.  
> Thanks for reading!  
> :D

**Author's Note:**

> This series is definitely Rayla&Soren but I’m not sure if it will become Rayla/Soren. I haven’t finished plotting out all the parts so I’m not sure how their relationship will evolve but as the focus will be on their relationship, Rayllum won’t ever be a major part if it does happen.


End file.
